Conveyer for carrying fibrous material



June 22 ,'1926. 1,589,732

S. ALLINGHAMET AL CONVEYER FOR CARRYING FIBROUS MATERIAL Filed Feb. 25. 1926 Patented June 22,1926. l

UNrrEDsTATEs PATENT OFFICE.

SIDNEY ALL'INGHAM, or LoNDoN, AND insumos soENENs, or DUnY sr. EDMUNDS'.

ENGLAND, AssIGNons To nonnn'r DoBY LIMITED, or'BunY sT. nDMUNDs, ENG- LAND, A BIRllTIISHKCOMPANY.`

CONVEYER FOR CARRYING -FIBROUS MATERIAL.

.Application filed February 26, 1926, Serial No. 90,777, and in Great Britain October 8, 1924.-

This invention relates to machines for breaking, `scutching, opening, combing, or decorticating fibrous materials such as stalks of flax, and vits object is' to provide improved means for gripping the said fibrous materials while being carried in straight lines through v,then-machine and while being submitted to the action of the Dperative devices therein.

According to this invention the stalks, leaves or other fibrous materials while their lfree ends are undergoing treatment are held at their other ends. between a rubber or other flexible belt having inclined sides and a jointed channel-shaped chain so arrangedv that the belt enters the channel of the said chain `and the grip is exerted across the mouth of the channel or `at the mouth and sides thereof. The Inecessary resiliency is may be, increased bythe spring of the metal of the channel.

The belt and chain travel at the same speed and'have no movement relatively to each vother while carrying the on the said material in a direction towards; or from the base 'or web of the channel.

The belt may be triangular in cross section, with the apex of the triangle directed towards thebase of the channel, or the may be ltruncated or rounded off.

the fibrous material being caught in the joints ofthe chains, especially when the chains open `out in passing around polyghnal driving or carrying rollers. n The stalks can be laid on the chain immediately -after passing the` 'polygonal roller or sprocket wheel at the feeding end of the machine,l

'- D 'connecting two ad]acednt links. E (Fig-l ure 5) indicates a rigid` supporting` channel i '4 and the belt .is then pressed into the channel of the chain-by another roller before the belt and chain reach the working zone, bending the end of each stalk into a zigzafg formation so that it is held with su cient W vfirmness without c l l .'-rollers to support the chain. In machines in which one end of a' stalk or leaf is gripped by the carrying means while the obtained from the width of the belt, and

fibrous material in a straight line, and noV pressure is exerted by the belt and cham` a'pexhe. opening of the channel may be 4directed up-` stalk or the like when fed into the machine, bending it into a zigzag shape and separatingto release it when required by passlngin opposite directions around puleys. In order that the said invention may be clearly understood and readily carried into effect, thesamewill now be described more fully`with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-' Figure 1 represents in cross section a belt applicable to the practice of this invention; Figure 2 represents a portion of the chain in central longitudinal section.` A

Fignre 3 isa plan ofthe chain seen in Figure 2. y

Figure 4 is a cross section of the chain taken on the line in Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a cross section of the belt, the

assembled in their relative positions for operation.

' Figure 6 is a side elevation illustrating a modified arrangement in which the .members of the chain, instead of being pinned to each other, are riveted to a flexible carrying belt.

Figure 7 `is an end elevation'of the link.

re resented in Figure 6.

igure 8 is a plan of the said link. The belt may consist mainly of soft rubber Awith acore B of relatively hard rubber, Vand itsoperative surface' is loevelledoff or inclined,'for example in the manner nach link c ofA the chain illustrated at a1. has at one end a widened portion or socket o1 to embrace one end of the adjacent link, and the base of the link has Jat its other` end a bored enlargement or boss o2 of somewhat cylindrical form for the reception of a pin in which the belt and chain travel together' into a zigzag shape and gri ped'between the sides of the-beItand the chain as indicated in dot-and-dash lines at l? in Figure 5, until the belt and chain are separated to release the said materials.

in the modification illustrated in Figures 6 to 8,-the boss c2, pin D, and rigid supporting channel E are omitted. Each link C is independently secured vto a flexible belt by any suitable means, for example by hifurcated rivets H. The overlapping or socketed part c1 of'the link `is of such length that any slight movement tending toA longitudinal separation of the links occurring by reason of stretching of the belt G is immaterial.

This invention will be found particularly useful in connection with machines adapted for straight continuousfeeding ,of the 'fib-l rous materials in such manner that the said materials are successively exposedto the action of consecutive operating devices, as for instance in cases where the materials are automatically transferred from one carrying device to another with or without reversal'of the position of the materialswto expose untreated portions thereof to the action of the operating devices, as distinguished from machines in which the mat-erials are held in clamps while traveling through the machine. In straight continuous eeding machines with flexible chains hitherto employed, it has been usual to support the chain with a number of small rollers, which rollers werel liable to be clogged with dust, tow, and long loose fibres,

thus necessitating frequent stoppages of the machine for cleaning the rollers; andthe rollers added considerably to the Weight and cost of the machine. Where such rollers were em loyed, it was not practicable to scutch what is known as short flax (which must bek scutched very close to the holding or carrying device) owing to the said-rollers occupying the space close to the chain. By the use of this invention it is possible scutch flax ofpractically any length, however short,r and when the materials have been laced across the chain and the belt force into the channel of the chain 'by a single roller, they can be'carried on to any length of travel that may be desired without the necessity of employing supporting roll' weave@ ers to keep the belt and chain in relation to each other.

What we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:-

l. A machine for the purpose specified comprising a conveyer for carrying fibrous materials in a straight line while being subjected to the actions of operative devices of the machine, said conveyer consisting of a series of channel shaped members associated so that their walls form a composite channel, the members being adapted to be moved bodily in a direction longitudinally of the channel, and a resilient member having substantially parallel portions on its side walls for engagement with respective side Walls of the channel members moving in a conproper tinuous path and adapted to be pressed into the channell for securing the fibrous-material therein, said resilient member being securely held in the channel by its contact with the side walls of the channel membersdue to its resiliency and being arranged to travel with the channel shaped members throughout a portion of their travel and thereafter to be withdrawn from the channel shaped members for movement through its continuouspath of travel.

2. In a machine for the purpose specified comprising a conveyer for carrying fibrous material in a straight line while being subjected to the action of the operative devices of the machine, the construction of said conveyer including an endless flexible carrying belt, a series of rigid channel shaped members secured on the said belt, in combination with a gripping belt of flexible material such as rubber having inclined sidewalls adjacent the face which first engages the fibrous material, and means for pressin said gripping belt into said channel shaped members when first taking up said fibrous material and before reaching the working zone whereby the grip on saidv material is exerted across the mouth of the channel, and is automatically maintained while the said materials are being carried through the Working zone.

SIDNEY ALLINGHAM. MAURICE SOEN 

